Here’s another gold medal for India in the Tokyo Paralympics 2020. The nation applauds for 23 years old Sumit Antil as he broke his record thrice in the men’s javelin throw F64 event at the Tokyo Paralympics to extend India’s tally. India has now won eight medals at the Games – two golds, four silvers, and two bronze.
Antil’s fifth throw of 68.55m won him the gold medal with Michal Burian of Australia grabbing a silver medal (66.29m) and Sri Lanka’s Dulan Kodithuwakku (65.61m) taking bronze.
Sumit Antil grabbed India’s second gold medal at the Paralympics after Avani Lekhara in his maiden outing at the Games with a record-breaking throw of 68.55 meters.
The wrestler-turned-javelin thrower later revealed that he was quite nervous during the finals and could have managed an even better result.
“It is a dream come true. I can’t express my feelings right now” said the gold medallist
The Prime Minister called Sumit and motivated the champion, he praised him saying that he won gold for the country despite facing such hardship, it will be an inspiration for the youngster’s.
The Sonepat athlete, who lost his left leg below the knee after he was involved in a motorbike accident in 2015, sent the spear to 68.55m in his fifth attempt, which was the best of the day by quite a distance and a new world record.
Sumit in an interview said, “I woke up thinking I had to give my best; entered the final with that thought”.
“This is my first Paralympics and I was a little nervous because the competitors are great. “I was hoping for a 70-meter-plus throw, maybe I can do 75m. It was not my best, I am very happy to break the world record,” Sumit said.
However, shooter Avani Lekhara on Monday became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal in the Paralympic Games. The 19-year-old bagged gold, India’s first at Tokyo 2020, in women’s 10m Air Rifle SH1 with a world record score of 249.6 in the final on Monday. Double Paralympic Games gold medallist Devendra Jhajaria’s hopes of extending his legacy by winning the third gold did not materialize as the Indian had to be satisfied with a silver medal in the men’s Javelin Throw F46 category while Sundar Singh Gurjar, a two-time World Championship gold medallist, took bronze with a best throw of 64.01 meters.
Discus thrower Yogesh Kathuniya clinched a silver medal in the men’s F56 event, taking India’s tally to four medals but it was Sumit Antil who broke his record not once but thrice and went on to win gold in the Men’s Javelin Throw – F64 Final, second for the day as India finished the day with a historic 5-medal high.
A student of Delhi’s Ramjas College, Antil was an able-bodied wrestler before his accident which led to the amputation of his leg below the knee. A para-athlete in his village initiated him to the sport in 2018.
A para-athlete in his village initiated him to the sport in 2018. He also competed against Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra in the able-bodied Indian Grand Prix series 3 on March 5 in Patiala. He finished seventh with a best throw of 66.43m while Chopra shattered his own national record with a big effort of 88.07m.
